The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) announced Tuesday that former Connecticut Democratic Sen. Chris Dodd will serve as the association’s next chairman and chief executive.
The job pays $1.5 million a year and entails promoting the industry association’s interests, a task that will force Dodd to walk a fine line as he cannot legally lobby his former Senate colleagues full-time for two years.
The MPAA has been led since 2004 by former Kansas Democratic Rep. Dan Glickman. Dodd was reportedly the organization’s second choice, with former Nebraska Democratic Sen. Bob Kerrey deciding against taking the position.
In a press release, Dodd said, “In several important ways, taking this step represents a continuation of my work in the Senate, from advancing the interests of children and families and creating and safeguarding American jobs.”
In the same release, Warner Bros. chairman and chief executive Barry Meyer said that Dodd was “the right person to lead the film industry through its toughest challenges regarding content protection and piracy on a domestic and global scale.”
The MPAA assigns film ratings for appropriateness. In recent years it has, along with the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), taken online distributors of copyright material to court.
The association is comprised of six major studios, including Walt Disney, Sony Pictures, Paramount Pictures, 20th Century Fox, Universal Studios, and Warner Bros.